Has there ever been a more confusingly vague term than “cloud computing?” To get an idea of just how confused people are, take a look at the numerous cloud adoption rate surveys. Depending on which survey you read, anywhere from 37% – 91% of companies are using the cloud. That’s quite a range.

Why the discrepancy in the numbers? I doubt all of the survey respondents have the same definition of “the cloud.” While it may mean one thing to some people, it may have a completely different meaning to others. So, what exactly does cloud computing mean? The “cloud computing” umbrella covers many different areas, such as…

Every week, I share the most interesting and useful tech articles that I’ve found over the past week. This week’s top articles focus on BYOD concerns, application design tips, and more. I hope you find them useful:

Every week, I share the most interesting and useful tech articles that I’ve found over the past week. This week’s top articles focus on lessons learned from working in IT, big data, and more. I hope you find them useful:

What we mean when we talk about cloud computing The term “cloud computing” might just be one of the most overused buzzwords in recent history, but…do you really know what it means? This article gives a great overview of cloud computing, and even explains important terminology related to the cloud.

Every week, I share the most interesting and useful tech articles that I’ve found over the past week. This week’s top articles focus on how cloud computing will change IT, embeddable BI, and more. I hope you find them useful:

Nine unheralded technology innovations Some technologies get all the press, while others go almost unnoticed. This article lists some of the most important, but often overlooked, tech innovations.

Every week, I share the most interesting and useful tech articles that I’ve found over the past week. This week’s top articles focus on the roadblocks to cloud computing, the best iPhone business apps, and more. I hope you find them useful:

Lessons from a big iPad Enterprise Adopter Is your company thinking about adopting tablets? If so, here’s an article you’ll want to read. It’s an interview with the manager of mobility at one of the biggest corporate iPad adopters in the world. Find out what he learned in the process, as well as why their company has switched their focus from native apps to mobile web apps.

Every week, I share the most interesting and useful tech articles that I’ve found over the past week. This week’s top articles focus on the BYOD best practices, IT tech skills, upcoming technologies, and more. I hope you find them useful:

Every week, I share the most interesting and useful tech articles that I’ve found over the past week. This week’s top articles focus on the best tablets in the world, BYOD, Twitter’s recent Transparency Report, and more. I hope you find them useful:

The U.S. Government has asked for Twitter user’s data 679 times so far Twitter recently unveiled their first Transparency Report, detailing how many times governments around the world demanded its users’ information and asked that it remove content. As it turns out, the U.S. Government topped the list. By far. I mention this story because it has big implications for cloud computing. What happens if the government requests user data from a cloud hosting vendor? Who owns the data? I suspect this will become a big issue in the next few years.

What is your biggest concern with cloud computing? What keeps your company from moving your business applications to the cloud? I’m curious–please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.

From what I’m hearing from many companies, the big issue is security. The idea that some other company controls their data is unsettling. What happens if there’s a security breach? What happens if a rogue employee at the cloud provider destroys or steals your data? Who has access to your data?

Those are all valid concerns. However, I think an even bigger question is this: What’s your Plan B? What happens if your cloud provider makes changes that you don’t like? What happens if they’re not as reliable as advertised? What happens if they aren’t as secure as you thought?

What’s your exit strategy?

Can you just take your data and your applications and migrate them back in-house or to another provider? Or, are you tied to that provider in some way? Are your apps locked into their proprietary database? Would breaking up with your cloud provider be a difficult process?

As businesses will soon learn, flexibility and portability are two of the most important aspects of cloud computing. Your applications should be built on an architecture that lets you move and deploy them at will. That way, you’re never locked to one cloud provider. That way, there’s always a Plan B.

So, how can you build flexible, cloud-ready applications that instantly port from one location to another? Here’s one way: Try m-Power. It lets you build cloud-ready applications quickly, using your current staff and skills. You can learn more right here.

Every week, I share the most interesting and useful tech articles that I’ve found over the past week. This week’s top articles focus on the risks of adopting the cloud, HTML5, employees using their own devices at work, and more. I hope you find them useful:

8 reasons to gear up for HTML5 Now HTML5 is a hot topic, but there’s still a lot of confusion surrounding it. This article gives a nice explanation of what it is and how it will help.

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About the Author

Joe Stangarone is a 30+ year veteran of the IT industry and president of mrc—the software company behind the award winning development platform, m-Power. Joe shares his leadership and technology insights through the Cup of Joe Blog, focusing primarily on ways businesses can save time, money, and increase productivity using technology.